Statement on water quality issued by Squaw Valley

Squaw Valley has responded with an extended statement following the news that E. coli and coliform bacteria have been detected in the drinking water of Squaw Valley’s upper mountain. The Placer County Department of Environmental Health was first to receive the report of the potential health issue on November 8th.

The water has been treated steadily since then and is showing signs of progression. E. coli has now disappeared from 3 out of the 4 wells that serve upper mountain, and they are showing low levels of coliform bacteria. This came from a statement by Wesley Nicks, director of Placer County Environmental Health.

Squaw Valley has kept all restaurants on the upper mountain closed and the skiers are not aloud to drink water until the problem is fixed entirely. No health issues have been reported from any of the guests, and top to bottom skiing is to carry on safely at the infamous ski resort.

In the statement made by Liesl Kenney, Public Relations Director for Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, to the Sun at 8:07 p.m. Wednesday, November 30, she explains the facts about water quality at Squaw Valley’s upper mountain. She says that an unusually heavy rainfall affected several water systems and led to an inundation of the upgraded water system that was installed over the summer which was followed by a contamination of the water supply. At no point however was the contaminated water available to the public. She continues to say that after routine water testing was done, they immediately contacted Placer County Environmental Health and the Squaw Valley Public Service District.